If you glance at the economic news, things seem to be slowly but steadily improving.


The Dow is climbing upward again, and inflation remains relatively low. Even the job numbers are ticking up: 151,000 new private sector jobs were created in October. These are good signs for our nation.


If you dig a little deeper, however, things are more worrisome — and could get much worse. 


The death of the entry-level job, a politician-made disaster of epic proportions, is a wholly underreported problem. Between the federal minimum wage shooting up 40 percent between 2007 and 2009, states and localities instituting an even higher floor and the Department of Labor cracking down on unpaid internships, things are grim. 


It is virtually undeniable that higher minimum wages lead to fewer jobs. A survey of the best studies analyzing the minimum wage by University of California, Irvine economics professor David Neumark and the Federal Reserve’s William Wascher found that 85 percent of economists supported the idea that increased wage floors killed low-skill jobs. Consider what happened after the last minimum wage hike: Economists William Even and David Macpherson found that there were 114,000 fewer employed teens as a direct result of the wage increase. 


What happens to those who are unable to find work? A study from the last recession in the early 2000s by the Employment Policies Institute found that “the effects of even relatively brief periods of unemployment can be felt — and measured — for years, not months … [due to] the stagnation of human capital that occurs when an individual is not working, in training or in school.”


“Stagnation of human capital” is a fancy way of saying “failing to better one’s situation.” Careers aren’t linear affairs; they are a series of steps, with experience built on top of experience on the way up the ladder. The study found that the effect of a six-month unemployment period led to reduced wages four years out and increased chances of unemployment in the future. You see this in both low- and high-skill jobs.


It would be foolish to blame politicians for the entirety of the job crisis, especially where more experienced workers are concerned. But politicians aren’t doing employers or employees any favors. They’re making it harder to hire low-skilled labor — where many people get to put their foot on the first rung of the job ladder. 


But wage floors aren’t the only things hurting the market. Somewhat consistently, the Labor Department under President Obama believes that using unpaid interns is unfair despite the fact that many young people are willing to forgo money for valued experience. And then there is the ultimate economic/political dysfunction: Some states refuse to implement wage credits for significant tip income earned on the job. The marketplace suggests that many people are willing to work for tips alone. A high-tipped waiter’s position at The Palm, Fleming’s or Capital Grille would be in demand at a zero minimum wage. 


And how about those summer unpaid internships that the Labor Department is attacking? Why is it OK to pay thousands in college tuition to learn something but not OK to trade your time for a learning experience in an intern program? 


Of course, you already know the answer to why it doesn’t make sense. It’s government policy. 


Richard Berman is president of Berman & Co., a Washington, D.C.-based lobbying firm.